Senshimon - Book One
by White Gryphon
Summary: The sailor senshi find themselves in the Pokemon World, and must find ways to adapt.
1. Chapter One

By White Gryphon  
  
Started 2/8/2001  
  
Characters mentioned here: Sailor Moon and PokÃ©mon.  
  
Sailor Moon is property of Naoko Takeuchi, Toei Animation, and Kodansha.  
  
PokÃ©mon is property of Satoshi Tajiri, Nintendo, and Game Freak.  
  
Everything else I made up myself. No real copyright or anything.  
  
Starts out in Tokyo, late 20th century.  
  
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This story features characters from a Japanese comic book and animated TV show called Sailor Moon. The main characters are five girls who used to be princesses of different planets, about one thousand years ago. Their kingdoms were totally destroyed when an invading force from the Dark Kingdom, or Negaverse, attacked from the planet Earth. The Dark Kingdom controlled powerful magic and deadly monsters that had the ability to drain the energy from their victims.  
  
Everyone was killed in the fight except for one single individual, Queen Serenity of the Moon Kingdom. Once the Dark Kingdom's carnage and destruction had come to an end, Serenity used her own magic to gather together the spirits of the people who were killed and send them all to the planet Earth, where they were reincarnated as humans a thousand years in the future.  
  
The princesses of the five main stars of astrology; Princess Serena of the Moon, Princess Ami of Mercury, Princess Mina of Venus, Princess Rei of Mars, and Princess Lita of Jupiter; were all reborn in the city of Tokyo. Also sent forward in time to guide them were two intelligent, talking cats, Luna and Artemis. They were sent to locate the princesses once they had begun to regain their memories of their past lives.  
  
These girls also have the power to transform at will into beautiful but powerful warriors, each with her own special elemental weapon. Serena, a blonde-haired girl who is denoted for being rather lazy and soft-centered, transforms into Sailor Moon and uses the power of special Crystals. Ami, a super-smart blue-haired girl who likes to read and study 24/7, transforms into Sailor Mercury and uses the power of Ice. Mina, an aspiring young girl with long blonde hair, who came to Tokyo from England and was a champion volleyball player, transforms into Sailor Venus and uses the power of Light. Rei, a temperamental priestess with long black hair and psychic powers, transforms into Sailor Mars and uses the power of Fire. Lita, a tall brown-haired girl who specializes in martial arts, transforms into Sailor Jupiter and uses the power of Lightning. (Note: the Japanese word 'henshin' is used in place of the word 'transform' in this story.)  
  
After one thousand years of banishment from the Solar System, the Dark Kingdom returned to conquer Earth by stealing energy from the population of Tokyo. The Sailor Scouts (or Sailor Senshi, as they are called in this story) had fought them every time they attacked, usually having to face some strange monster or dark power. After a long, hard battle, the Senshi managed to defeat the leader of the Dark Kingdom, Queen Beryl, thus destroying the last remaining remnants of the terrible and barbaric people who had demolished their kingdoms so long ago.  
  
Other evil villains were soon to follow, coming to Earth to seek power or energy by use of monsters and magic. Even though every new enemy was stronger than the last, the Senshi also became stronger as they learned more and more about their own past and special powers. This story takes place a few days after the defeat of the people from the Black Moon, who had come from the future to take over Tokyo while in its 'primitive stage'; in the 30th Century, Tokyo had become the center of the universe, and was the base of the future Sailor Senshi and Neo-Queen Serenity, ruler of the future Earth.  
  
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++  
  
  
  
It was late at night.  
  
The night sky was spangled with stars, hosted by a full moon, which resembled an enormous carved pearl hanging in the dark blue velvet sky. There was hardly any movement or sound in this area of Tokyo except for the rustle of tree branches in the wind, or of paper being blown across the sidewalk.  
  
Everyone was at home, asleep in his or her beds, oblivious to everything else but their own subconscious foretellings and fantasies.  
  
A car rushed by the Tsukino house, blowing a piece of old newspaper toward the gate. It batted silently against the metal bars, and then dropped to the ground. The invisible wind whispered like a hurried ghost down the street.  
  
Serena Tsukino lay in her bed, fast asleep. Her bed sheets were tossed about, her dreams being rather vivid.  
  
Luna lay on the bed beside Serena, watching the world outside through the bedroom window. She was very tired, though she could not make herself go to sleep. She didn't understand why. She just felt she had to keep watch for some reason unknown.  
  
She sighed and looked out at the shadowed streets below. The skies were clear; it was going to be a sunny day tomorrow. Serena was planning to go on a picnic in the park near the Shrine with the other girls. Artemis was sure to attend as well, arriving with Mina. The rest of the day would be spent lounging in the soft grass on one of the park's several hills, basking lazily in the sun.  
  
Lazy seemed to fit with everything Serena did, whether she planned it or not, Luna thought. However, she did enjoy the thought of some well-earned rest, considering the battles they had fought to defeat their enemy. Everyone needed a day off after fighting the Dark Forces.  
  
Luna looked down on the street in front of the house. Another car went by, it's headlights glaring. It stopped at the intersection, then turned right and went off down another street. The white light dimmed as it went out of sight behind some buildings.  
  
Then Luna noticed something near the intersection. An area of darkness shifted slightly, and then disappeared altogether. She looked around that area again, but didn't see anything suspicious. She got up on all fours and looked again. Nothing but asphalt and streetlamps.  
  
She padded over to Serena and prodded her shoulder with her paw.  
  
"Serena... get up, there's something strange going on outside."  
  
Serena shifted around, then rolled over and went back to sleep, snoring audibly.  
  
Luna prodded her harder.  
  
"Serena, wake up! I need you to find out what's going on!"  
  
She stopped snoring for a moment, then yawned, rolling back over.  
  
"What is it, Luna...."  
  
"There was a shadow outside that moved, then disappeared. I need you to go check it out with me."  
  
Serena then pushed herself into a sitting position, and yawned again.  
  
She shook her head to bring things into focus.  
  
"Sure, Luna.... yawn.... wait until I get my slippers on..." 


	2. Chapter Two

It was still quiet outside as Serena and Luna walked out the front door and into the yard. Luna ran up to the gate and looked out from it, toward the intersection.  
  
"Look, Serena! It came back!"  
  
Serena walked quietly up behind Luna, and then looked to where she was pointing with her paw. There certainly was a dark figure standing in the street.  
  
She couldn't tell exactly what it was, though.  
  
"Luna, what do you think it is?"  
  
"I don't know. I'm picking up this strange vibration from it, but it isn't telling me anything about it."  
  
"Can you tell what it wants, or where it's from?"  
  
"No, this is unusual. I don't believe it's from this world."  
  
The figure looked to Serena something like a wild cat, standing on its hind legs. It had a long slender tail with the end being very thick.  
  
Its arms were thin. It didn't look like it had any muscle anywhere but in its legs, which had powerful-looking thighs. It was looking around questioningly, standing in the shadow of a nearby building.  
  
Serena and Luna watched the creature for a while, waiting for it to do something meaningful. It was only looking around, staying rooted to its spot. They could see the head moving, the arms shifting only a small bit. The tail moved like a cat's, twitching nervously back and forth.  
  
Then, it turned to look behind it. It stared right at Serena and Luna. Its eyes appeared from the shadow, glowing with a bright red aura. Its tail stopped moving.  
  
Serena looked down at Luna.  
  
"What... it's staring right at us. Does it see us?"  
  
She got her answer soon enough.  
  
All of a sudden the creature was right in front of them, on the other side of the bars. Its small three-fingered hands grasped the bars as Serena and Luna backed away in surprise. Serena screamed in fright.  
  
As the creature gripped the bars, its hands started to glow the same red as its eyes. To Serena's horror, the bars started to melt in the creature's hands.  
  
"Luna...! What's happening?"  
  
"I don't know! Let's get away from here!"  
  
They turned and ran back toward the house. They didn't turn to see where the creature was or what it was doing.  
  
They had reached the backyard when Serena used her watch-communicator to contact the others. She looked back toward the front yard, hoping the creature had given up and left. She didn't see any light, nor heard any sounds. She gave a small sigh of relief, still trying to catch her breath.  
  
"Serena! LOOK OUT!!!"  
  
Snapping back to alertness, she looked around.  
  
The creature had somehow sneaked up BEHIND them. It was only a few inches away from Serena. She could hear its ragged breathing. Its eyes were still glowing bright red.  
  
One hand reached up toward Serena's face. She was frozen in fear. Staring at the creature's round fingertips, she saw them start glowing a dull white.  
  
She heard a screeching and slashing, and the spell was broken. Luna had sprung onto the creature's face, scratching with her sharp claws. The creature stopped to try and bat Luna off its face.  
  
That gave Serena time to run somewhere and transform.  
  
She turned and took off toward the back porch, hiding behind some tall bushes. She pulled out her henshin brooch.  
  
"Moon Crystal Power, transform!!!"  
  
White light exploded from behind the bushes, startling the creature. It stopped pulling at Luna and stared with wide eyes at the transformation taking place.  
  
Sailor Moon's uniform materialized from nowhere, wrapping around her slender body and turning into a white leotard with a blue skirt and collar. Gold earrings and hairpieces flashed from around her head. Her glossed boots and gloves seemed to shimmer with the light of the moon overhead.  
  
The senshi of the Moon stepped out of the light and turned to face the creature.  
  
"Hold it right there, you... thing!"  
  
It was still looking at her, unable to explain the sight before it. It tilted its head to one side quizzically. Luna was on the ground, watching the creature for any sudden movement. Sailor Moon continued with her speech.  
  
"You have no business here, you monster! On behalf of the Moon, I shall punish you!"  
  
Sailor Moon did her challenge pose. The creature still stared. Luna kept watching it. No one moved for a long while.  
  
Suddenly the creature disappeared. Sailor Moon and Luna looked about frantically.  
  
"Where... where did it go?"  
  
Then Moon felt something grab her arm. Before she could turn around, all of the muscles in her body locked and she was left frozen where she stood. All she could see was a red light. She knew for sure the creature was doing this.  
  
It was right beside her, grasping her arm tightly. Its other hand was about to touch her face. The light blinded her vision; she couldn't see it coming.  
  
"Mars Celestial Fire, SURROUND!!!!!!"  
  
The spell was broken once more as several glowing rings flashed past her, catching the creature and sending him across the lawn. It didn't scream or anything. All that was heard was the sound of fire flying through the air and the rings slamming into the creature, then the thud of the creature landing in some bushes on the other end of the backyard.  
  
Sailor Moon turned around to see Sailor Mars, who still had her arms outstretched from the attack, watching the creature for a counterattack. Coming up behind her were the other scouts; Mercury, Venus, and Jupiter.  
  
Luna looked up, and called to the others.  
  
"Be careful! That thing has some sort of psychic power. Try not to let it touch you!"  
  
The senshi nodded, then looked at the creature. As it got up from the bushes, a glowing translucent sphere faded into view around it. The red glow returned to its eyes at it glared at its assailant.  
  
"Mars, watch out! It's about to attack!"  
  
Moon looked at Mars again. Her arms were still out in front of her in battle stance; she hadn't moved.  
  
"Mars, you okay?"  
  
There was no reply. Mars' eyes were fixed on the creature, and didn't move with Moon's words. Moon moved closer and saw that Mars' eyes were wide open in fear.  
  
"Mars, snap out of it!"  
  
No response.  
  
Moon shouted to the other senshi.  
  
"It's got Mars! Somebody do SOMETHING!!!"  
  
Venus was the first to respond.  
  
"Venus Love Chain ENCIRCLE!!!"  
  
She waved her arm about, summoning a golden chain of tiny hearts. The chain spun around her for a moment, then shot out toward the creature.  
  
The creature looked up at it, but otherwise didn't move. The chain stopped when it came in contact with the sphere surrounding the creature, and with a flash the chain dissolved into sparkling dust. Venus moaned in disappointment.  
  
"Maybe it needs to see its targets in order to stop them! Mercury Bubbles,  
  
Blast!!!"  
  
A thick blue fog then suddenly swallowed up the area. All the senshi could see of the creature was the glow from its shield.  
  
"Moon, you see the target? Use your wand and see if that works!"  
  
"Right!"  
  
Moon pulled out her Scepter, and pointed it at the enemy.  
  
"Moon Scepter ELIMINATION!!!!!"  
  
The beam of pink light shot through the fog and struck the shield. There was a burst of light, and the beam faded. When the fog returned, they could still see the creature's aura.  
  
Mars was still frozen in place, facing the creature, arms out.  
  
Venus cried out in alarm.  
  
"The shield must be what's keeping the Scepter attack from working!"  
  
Moon looked over at Mercury.  
  
"Do you have any data on this thing?"  
  
Mercury pulled out her minicomputer and scanned toward the creature. The screen began to display some concentric circles around where the creature stood.  
  
"This is registering some areas of quantum displacement..."  
  
"What's that?"  
  
"This creature must have come here from another dimension. The words showing up on my screen don't make sense... something about scientists... years of horrific gene-splicing and DNA experiments."  
  
"That thing must have been created in a lab or something, then."  
  
"Hold on, there's something else here about seeing the past and the future at the same time... that must explain the time-warp field around it."  
  
"A time-traveler?"  
  
"Look out, it's coming at us!"  
  
The creature shot past them in a red blur, and the senshi scattered. Mercury dropped her computer in the grass, and got down to look for it. As she was preoccupied the creature slammed into her as it made a return trip. There was a flash of light, and the entire side of her body beneath the ribs was singed badly. The fog muffled her screams.  
  
Sailor Jupiter looked around for the light from the monster's shield. Upon finding it, she prepared to attack.  
  
"Jupiter Thunder, CRASH!!!!"  
  
The thunderbolt blasted through the mist and hit the glowing shield, surrounding it but leaving the creature unharmed. In the flashes from the electric discharge, Moon could see the creature clearly.  
  
It looked almost exactly like a wild cat except that it had no stripes or spots, much less whiskers or a visible nose. Even its fur couldn't be distinguished. Its skin was a dull green, except around its thighs and the entire length of its tail, which were a dirty yellow. It only had two toes on each foot, with a third one up around the ankles. Its forehead was large and broad, its glowing eyes sunk in under it. Its ears had no cavities; they were almost like spikes of bone standing up on either side of its head. There was a tube-like apparatus connecting the back of its head with its upper spine.  
  
It turned and headed for its attacker, who was almost stunned by the ineffectiveness of her assault. Seeing the creature coming at her, she tried her attack again.  
  
"JUPITERTHUNDERCRASH!!!!!"  
  
The lightning flashed again, but to no avail. The creature only stopped for a brief moment, and then resumed rushing toward Sailor Jupiter. It was almost a few inches away from her when in a spasm of blind panic she thrashed out with her right hand, which went unscathed through the yellow sphere, striking the monster in its face.  
  
The creature gave its first yell of pain, and recoiled. Its shield started to fade.  
  
Jupiter stood staring at it for a moment. She was surprised that she hit the creature, and even more surprised that the shield didn't protect it from her hand. She looked at her hand, which showed no signs of damage.  
  
However, soon enough the monster had regained its senses and was ready to attack again. It held out its arms, preparing to freeze Jupiter like it did Mars earlier.  
  
Jupiter backed up a bit. The monster started to rush at her again, arms outstretched, ready to lock Jupiter in its grasp. Its eyes glowed an even fiercer shade of red.  
  
From out of nowhere, Mercury's screams reached her.  
  
"HIT IT AGAIN... BUT NOT WITH YOUR LIGHTNING!!!"  
  
Almost disoriented, she didn't notice how close the monster was and sprung forward, body-slamming it hard. It was knocked down from that attack, falling on the ground, its shield fading out completely.  
  
Mars was immediately released from the psychic hold on her. She fell over in exhaustion, hitting the ground and lying there panting. Venus, who was watching over Mercury at the time, got up and ran to Mars while Moon cautiously approached the half-conscious monster, who still lay sprawled on the ground, twitching from damaged nerves. Jupiter kept her distance from the creature. Moon felt it best to do the same.  
  
"Why... how... our own attacks didn't seem to do anything to it... yet you only backhanded it and almost knocked it senseless."  
  
"I dunno how it did that. Selective barrier, I suppose."  
  
Luna ran over and tended to Mercury, who had found her computer and was scanning the creature again while lying on the ground.  
  
"It has something here about stats... something about 'attack' and 'special attack'. Something about how Jupiter's physical attacks were not protected against by the barrier, which only protects against something called a special attack."  
  
Luna watched the computer screen, which was starting to scroll numbers and undecipherable words across it.  
  
"Special Attack... that must be like the elemental attacks we use, like lightning and fire. The barrier dispersed them. However, it didn't reflect Jupiter's hand away, since it wasn't an element, it was part of her body."  
  
Mercury started to move a bit, then flinched from the pain. Luna looked over at her injured side. Part of the uniform had been burnt away and the skin underneath it had turned dark red with brighter red specks. Mercury had suffered some rather heavy damage from the creature's attack, and Luna was surprised that she wasn't dead yet.  
  
"You need to stay still. We're going to get an ambulance and take you to the hospital. Your side is burned really badly and needs tending to immediately."  
  
"Yes Luna... Only... I don't feel a lot of pain yet... perhaps the nerves were destroyed by the burn..."  
  
Luna looked up at Sailor Moon, who was still over by the creature, looking at it.  
  
"Sailor Moon, go call 911!"  
  
She turned and looked at Luna questioningly.  
  
"Yeah sure... uh... what's the number?"  
  
Luna sighed out loud.  
  
"Never mind... I'll go do it."  
  
Sailor Venus came over to tend to Mercury while Luna ran inside to get the phone. Sailor Moon watched Luna leave, then turned her attention back to the sedated monster lying on the grass, which was twitching nervously.  
  
"So, anyone have a guess at what this thing is?"  
  
Sailor Jupiter shook her head.  
  
"Your guess is as good as mine."  
  
The creature's eyes snapped open, and then fixed themselves upon Sailor Moon.  
  
For a moment Moon stood there stunned, then snapped to alertness. Jupiter yelled at the others.  
  
"Everyone watch out, it's reviving!"  
  
Venus and Mars stood up and looked over at the monster, preparing to attack when the need came. However, the cat-like monster didn't seem to notice anyone else but Moon.  
  
It's eyes then started to glow a bright white. The area of the ground beneath it also began to glow white, forming a circle around the creature.  
  
A second later, five of these circles shot out over the ground at the senshi, each one staying on the ground like a spotlight and stopping under one of each of the senshi. Venus leaped back in surprise, trying to dodge her circle. Although staying on the ground, the circle followed her to her landing spot, staying rooted underneath her. She screamed in alarm.  
  
"What are these?!"  
  
The other scouts tried backing away from the white circles, but they couldn't get out of their radius, their feet stayed within the circle as if a spotlight were fixed to each one of them. The monster started to get up, its eyes still glowing the same white as the circles.  
  
It raised its three-fingered hands high in the air. Another yellow aura began to resolve around it. The senshi stared in terror of what the monster was about to do.  
  
The aura then began to change from a yellow glow to a black shadow. The shield around the creature suddenly became darker than the senshi had ever seen before, and the creature seemed to disappear into the darkness.  
  
In a short moment it was gone.  
  
Sailor Mars looked down at the white circle underneath her. To her horror the circle blinked and suddenly turned pitch black.  
  
"Scouts, watch o--"  
  
Her warning was interrupted by a loud scream as she fell through the black disc. Each of the other scouts also felt the ground fall out from under them and ended up falling through their own circles. For a few moments everything to them was black. 


	3. Chapter Three

Sailor Moon screamed as she fell. However, after a short while, she didn't feel the air rushing past her like she expected to feel while falling. She was only moving downward at a fast pace. Although she couldn't see anything in the darkness, she looked down toward where she was falling.  
  
All of a sudden, the world was bright again, and she closed her eyes, half- blinded by the sudden presence of light.  
  
Moon slammed into something soft, yet firm. The breath knocked out of her, she lay there on whatever it was for a few moments, gasping to get her breath back. What she lay on felt very familiar.  
  
After a while she opened her eyes a bit, still blinded by the light.  
  
She was lying on the ground in what looked like a forest of pine trees. The sky overhead was overcast with clouds, making it look stark white. The grass underneath her was cool and prickly against her skin.  
  
She pushed herself into a sitting position and looked around. She saw other senshi there with her, lying in a circle around the creature, which was glowing a faint yellow. Its eyes were closed, and it's breathing appeared labored.  
  
What surprised Moon was that the senshi had all transformed back into their normal attire, which they were wearing before they transformed last night.  
  
Or was it last night? Where were they, where it was almost mid-morning?  
  
Moon looked at herself. She was wearing her pajamas, for she had transformed back into Serena.  
  
She stayed sitting on the ground, afraid she'd reveal anything if she stood up. She looked around at the other senshi, noticing Sailor Mercury, now Ami, lying down on her bad side against the aboveground roots of one of the trees. Her eyes were closed and she wasn't moving.  
  
Serena got up and ran over to her, expecting the worst. Kneeling down next to her, she lifted her upper body and dragged her away from the tree, laying her down on her back. Serena had to move Ami's jacket and shirt out of the way, for her normal clothes were covering up the wound.  
  
Ami's burn had changed from a large black and red abrasion into an orange ring-shaped blemish encircling the area that was burned.  
  
Serena was at a loss about what to do. Ami was unconscious and wounded, or at least Serena thought she was... she was still breathing, which Serena took as her still being alive.  
  
She felt a rustling; Rei had kneeled down beside her to inspect Ami's wound.  
  
"What's this? It doesn't look as bad as it did a minute ago."  
  
"I don't know. What's going on, anyway? Where are we?"  
  
Serena looked up and around at her surroundings. It was very still and quiet in the woods, except for the occasional distant chirping of a bird. At random intervals a gentle breeze rustled the tree branches, making them sway slightly. A slight chill hung in the air.  
  
"Wherever we are... it's cold..."  
  
"We have to find someone, somebody... gotta help Ami..."  
  
"Gotta put some clothes on... brrr..."  
  
All of a sudden Serena felt something warm placed around her body. She looked around, and noticed Lita sitting behind her. Unlike Serena, Lita planned ahead, and had dressed herself before henshining. She had taken off her varsity jacket and put it on Serena. The jacket was at least three sizes larger than Serena could wear, however, it served well as a blanket.  
  
"There you go... feel warmer?"  
  
Serena pulled the jacket around her tightly, snuggling into it.  
  
"Yeah.... oh yeah... thanks a lot!"  
  
"No problem."  
  
Rei looked up from Ami's body, and around at the forest.  
  
"Hey.... Where's Mina?"  
  
"Huh?"  
  
Rei, Serena, and Lita stood up and looked around, Serena sagging a bit under the weight of Lita's jacket. Mina was nowhere around.  
  
"Mina!!!"  
  
"Mina, where are you?"  
  
"MIIIINAAAA!!!"  
  
"Hey! Where did the monster go?"  
  
Everyone's attention suddenly turned to the monster, which seemed to be the reason they were all where they were in the first place. It had also disappeared; where it lay, there was a pile of yellow and green dust.  
  
Rei was staring in disbelief.  
  
"It.... disintegrated..."  
  
"It what?"  
  
"You see that dust? That was the monster!"  
  
"Oh... thank goodness that wasn't Mina."  
  
After the mentioning of Mina's name, everyone (except Ami) suddenly heard a piercing noise somewhere in the distance. It sounded like someone screaming.  
  
"Mina!"  
  
"You guys stay here, I'm gonna go check it out!"  
  
Lita turned and ran off in the direction of the sound. Rei watched her leave, and then turned to Serena.  
  
"I don't know if I should leave you here with Ami."  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Because I know you can't defend yourself if another monster attacks you!"  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"You know what I mean!"  
  
"Oh yeah? Then why don't YOU stay here... and I'LL go over to where Lita is and get myself killed by... whatever's out there making Mina scream?"  
  
"How do you know it's another monster?"  
  
"I just know!"  
  
"Oh yeah? Well, I wouldn't mind if you did run out there!"  
  
"You'd be without a leader!"  
  
"And you call yourself a LEADER?"  
  
As Serena and Rei continued to argue, a small creature was watching them from the branches of a nearby pine tree. It cocked its head to the left, then to the right, attempting to comprehend the situation. 


	4. Chapter Four

Meanwhile, Lita was running through the forest, getting closer to the screams, which became louder and louder with her approach. She finally recognized a shape moving through the waist-high grass-a girl with long, blonde hair tied up in a red bow was running as fast as she could, screaming every time she caught her breath. Her long, white skirt was in tatters.  
  
"Mina! What's wrong? What are you... *pant*... running from?"  
  
At the sound of her name, Mina turned her head and saw Lita standing on the other side of some low bushes. She ran over to her and dived behind a tree, clutching the tree trunk while gasping to catch her breath. She looked up at Lita, her eyes wide with fright. She didn't say a word.  
  
Lita felt something tugging at her shoulder. She whipped around and found herself face-to-face with what looked to be a flying insect-like dinosaur with huge, silver blades for arms, hovering in the air on wings that flapped in a rapid motion, like the wings of a wasp.  
  
It spread its jaws, revealing teeth that resembled one-inch white knives. From this gaping maw came a hissing screech that strangely resembled the word "SCYTHE!!!"  
  
"Mina, get back!"  
  
Lita reached behind her and shoved Mina hard, sending her falling back into the tall grass. Mina gagged and rolled over, looking up to see Lita dodge to the side as the creature swung one of its blades at her, which slammed into the tree instead. As the creature was pulling the blade back out of the tree trunk, Lita took the opportunity to grab hold of its other arm, yanking it backward and hauling it over her head. She then turned and threw it against another nearby tree, which shook as the creature slammed into it, sending pine needles raining gently down upon its body. Lita prepared to attack it again, but stopped when she realized the creature had disappeared...  
  
"SCYYYYYY-THER!!!"  
  
She looked up... the creature was above her!  
  
She dodged to the side, a blade stabbing down into the dirt. She made a move to grab at the creature's leg, but pulled back as the other blade swung at her, flashing as the light reflected off its flat side. She didn't want to wait until it had pulled its other blade free. She sprang onto it, attempting to knock it down and pin it to the ground.  
  
All of a sudden her vision turned bright white, for a split second she thought she had gone blind. The next moment she felt a searing pain that spread throughout her body before zoning in on her left side. She was thrown to the ground, which made her sight flash white again, the pain wracking her body. The creature was upon her, the twin blades swinging over her body. It hissed a cry of triumph.  
  
Mina, having had the creature's attention diverted from her for the moment, had found a bit of courage to try and face the creature. She grabbed a medium-sized branch and pulled down, snapping it off the limb. She then leapt at the creature, brandishing the branch at its face.  
  
"Hey there! Get off of her, you... you big dirty bug!"  
  
The creature stopped and looked up at Mina with its large, reptilian eyes. It made a quick movement which Mina didn't notice until she realized that the branch was falling to pieces in her hand, like a sliced vegetable.  
  
She stood there for a moment, staring at the remaining piece of twig in her hand, then closed her eyes, opened her mouth, and let out a piercing scream.  
  
Mina's eyes shot open at the sound of an explosive roar from nearby, then reeled back as a broad torrent of flames shot past her, enveloping the creature. She looked around wildly, and noticed a smaller creature, about the size of a small dog, that looked like it had a Mohawk made of spiked flames on its head. It had a black stripe running from its nose down the back of its head, all the way back to its tail, which looked a bit like the Mohawk. She stared at this creature for a moment before turning her attention back at the bug creature, which now lay on the ground beside Lita, smoke rising from its still form. Parts of its body were scorched black. Lita, on the other hand, was lying on her back; her eyes were shut tight, her teeth bared. Her breathing was ragged and labored; her hands clutched her side, where blood was soaking into the sweatshirt she wore.  
  
"Oh my god!"  
  
Mina was at Lita's side in less than a second. She kneeled down beside her, watching Lita's hands, which were also covered in blood.  
  
"Oh my god.... You're cut open... That thing cut you open..."  
  
Lita relaxed a bit, opening her mouth, opening one eye to look at Mina. She didn't say anything. Mina could tell that it was hurting her to breathe.  
  
"Don't move... not a bit... I'll go find... no. I can't leave you..."  
  
For a moment she remembered the other creature. She looked over her shoulder at the dog-like creature, which was looking back at the bushes. A man was running up to the creature, wearing a blue sweatshirt with a hood, over a pair of blue jeans and gray sneakers. He looked at Mina, then at Lita.  
  
"Holy Miltank, are you okay? Oh my gosh!"  
  
The man jumped over and kneeled down on the other side of Lita, looking at her wound. He looked up at Mina, who was on the verge of tears.  
  
"You take Blaze and go find some of the contest people. They're right over there on the edge of the woods, near the fences. Tell them what happened and to bring a stretcher with them."  
  
Mina choked and looked around, then behind her at the dog-creature.  
  
"Did you hear me? I said go! Now!!!"  
  
Startled, Mina got up and ran off. As she dashed through the tall grass, she looked down at the dog-creature, which was running alongside her. It didn't seem to be giving chase. It actually seemed to be running WITH her.  
  
Did it... belong to the man?  
  
And what was the man talking about? Who were these 'contest people'?  
  
She nearly jumped when she heard the small creature beside her calling out words that sounded like 'Kwill! Kwill!' then turn and bound off in another direction. Having no other choice, Mina followed it as it dashed through the thick brush. 


	5. Chapter Five

The man in the blue sweatshirt, seated on the ground next to Lita, reached out a hand to attempt to move her hands away from her wound. Her open eye followed his movements. She was in too much pain to look at his face.  
  
"There… easy, now… I just wanna have a look…"  
  
He tried to pull her left arm away, but it was no use. Her limbs were all locked up. She continued to watch him with one open eye. Her breathing began to slow down, though it still hissed through her bared teeth. He sat back, looking down at the blood-soaked area around her wound.  
  
"That Scyther got you pretty bad… I'm gonna want to know why you were out here without anything to protect you… you should have been on your way to the nearest center if your last one fainted…"  
  
As he spoke, he twisted around to reach for something around his waist. His hand re-emerged holding what looked to Lita to be a small sphere the size of a golf ball, which was divided along the middle, one half colored red, the other half white, and which had a small metal button situated on the thin black line dividing it.  
  
"I'm gonna have to put you under some sort of sedation… I hope you'll forgive me for this… This is the first time I've ever run into someone who's nearly been gutted by a Scyther."  
  
The man pressed the button with his index finger, which caused some strange mechanism in the ball to increase the ball's size to that of a softball. He held up the ball, which, before Lita's eyes, split open along the black line, releasing a blast of bright red light. Lita watched the light, which shot over her, resolving into a form that stood beside her, opposite the man.  
  
When the light dimmed down, a rather unusual-looking creature was left standing there, resembling a short, stout woman with long, blonde hair that hung down past her feet. She wore a long red dress that covered up everything from her neck down and dragged the ground. Her face was hidden in shadow, but Lita could see her eyes and lips. Her dress sleeves covered her short arms, each which ended in four-fingered hands covered by purple gloves.  
  
"Bernice… I need you to put this girl to sleep."  
  
All of a sudden, Lita found her voice.  
  
"WHAT!?"  
  
Before Lita could say anything else, she felt the she-creature draw nearer and place its cold lips against her right cheek. After that, she suddenly felt very drowsy. She managed to utter the words 'what did you' before she broke off, her eyes dropped shut, and everything faded out.  
  
"Will you guys… please… stop fighting…"  
  
Serena and Rei froze in mid-insult, then simultaneously turned to look at Ami, who was apparently starting to come around.  
  
Ami rolled over onto her side, raising a hand to rub her head. She looked up at Serena and Rei with tired eyes.  
  
Rei was the first one to speak.  
  
"Be careful Ami… does it still hurt?"  
  
"Does what still hurt?"  
  
Serena looked down at Ami's side. There was no sign of an injury at all.  
  
"Ami, your burn is gone!"  
  
Confused, Ami sat up, then pulled up her shirt to see what Serena was talking about. Her skin was perfectly normal, with no discoloration or markings whatsoever.  
  
"Oh yeah…. my burn… what happened?"  
  
Rei shook her head, also without an answer. Serena just stared at the place where the burn used to be.  
  
Ami looked up and around at the surrounding forest.  
  
"Hey… where are we? And where are Lita and Mina?"  
  
"Hey! Where did Luna go?"  
  
"I don't know… the last thing I remember, she went inside to call for help…"  
  
"Oh, no!"  
  
Serena sat up straight, her eyes wide.  
  
"What, Serena?"  
  
"Luna didn't come with us! She's still back home… wherever she is!"  
  
Everyone sat in silence at that thought.  
  
"Artemis isn't here either…"  
  
"We're all alone…"  
  
"No one to advise us…"  
  
"…Where are Lita and Mina?"  
  
Rei looked around, then pointed off into an area of tall grass.  
  
"Lita heard someone scream somewhere over there, and took off running to see what it was. She… hasn't come back yet."  
  
"And we don't know where Mina is. That scream could have been Mina…"  
  
Mina saw a brick path up ahead, apparently a clearing, for it was illuminated by sunlight. The dog-creature that was accompanying her leapt over a small hedge that served as a barrier between the forest and the path, then stopped and waited for Mina, who clumsily fell over the bush, face-first on the hard bricks. Panting, she pushed herself to her feet and resumed running, this time following the creature as it took off down the path, which led to a small white building with a terracotta-tiled roof.  
  
As they neared the building, Mina noticed two men standing outside talking with each other. Both were wearing blue uniforms, which didn't look too different from police uniforms. At the sound of her footsteps, they stopped talking and turned their heads to look at her, then down at the creature, which was hopping up and down at their feet, repeating the word 'Kwill!' over and over in an excited tone.  
  
One man watched Mina as she ran up to him, stopped, and bent over with her hands on her knees, gasping to catch her breath.  
  
"Hold on there, gal… breathe… just breathe…"  
  
Mina's mouth was dry with both exhaustion and fright. She struggled to get her voice as the small creature continued to dance around the legs of the two men.  
  
Ami pressed some buttons on her palmtop. The display began to show a map of the area.  
  
"This is strange…"  
  
"What?"  
  
Serena leaned in to get a closer look, and almost toppled over from the weight of the jacket she was still wearing. Ami pointed to the screen.  
  
"We're in a forest… but it's in some sort of park… and look at how the park is laid out…"  
  
Rei looked over Ami's shoulder.  
  
"It looks like a pair of circles… one inside the other… with a line going through it."  
  
"What kind of a park is this?"  
  
Suddenly, they all heard a chirping noise. Everyone looked up and saw a rather large bird sitting in a nearby tree. Well, they assumed it was a bird because of its pink beak and its light-brown feathers, but there was something strange about this bird. It had large eyes similar to those of a human, and was about a foot tall. The feathers on its chest were a pale yellow, and it had dark rings around its eyes. It was eyeing them suspiciously, every now and then making a chirp that sounded like "Pid!"  
  
"What is that? I've never seen a bird like THAT before!"  
  
All of a sudden, the display on Ami's computer changed. It was now showing a picture of the bird, and text was scrolling beside the image. Ami began reading it.  
  
"What's this… small… docile… common… kicks up blinding sand when it beats its wings during an attack…"  
  
Serena looked back up at the strange bird.  
  
"If it's common, then why haven't I seen it before?"  
  
"I don't know. What I'm wondering is why my computer starts showing this data every time we see a strange creature. It did just about the same thing when that other monster appeared…"  
  
"Okay… we're in this strange park… full of strange animals… Mina and Lita are gone off somewhere… and someone over there was screaming like she was in danger."  
  
"Which most likely must have been Mina."  
  
"Ami, can your map tell us where we are in the forest?"  
  
Ami pressed some more buttons on her keypad, and the display changed back to that of the unusual park map. Looking at the picture, she pressed some other buttons. The computer uttered a short beep, and a single, pulsing red dot appeared on the map, inside the larger circle but outside the smaller one, near the top of the display.  
  
"I'm afraid it can't tell us where Lita or Mina are… I hope they're safe…"  
  
Rei looked back up at the bird, which then turned and hopped off the branch, flying away into the trees.  
  
"I just hope the only creatures out there are the same as that bird… whatever kind it was." 


	6. Chapter Six

As the man in the blue sweatshirt finished dressing Lita's wound, he heard footsteps on the pine-needle-covered ground. Looking up, he saw a group of men in blue uniforms, following Mina. He leaned back from Lita and got up onto his feet.  
  
"Thank goodness you're here… this girl was the victim of a Scyther attack… got her in the side… she took it pretty badly..."  
  
Mina ran around him and kneeled down next to Lita's body. Lita wasn't moving; she didn't even look conscious. The only thing that told Mina that she was still alive was that her chest was slowly and gently rising and falling with her breathing.  
  
"What… what did you do to her?"  
  
"I put her to sleep… I hope you don't mind, I had to use my Jynx…"  
  
"Your WHAT??"  
  
"My Jynx, Bernice…"  
  
"It sounds like you drugged her or something… and that other thing, the giant bugosaurus… you called it a Scyther?"  
  
As Mina talked, the other men were busy carefully moving Lita onto a stretcher. She still didn't awaken; Mina seriously believed the man had drugged her.  
  
"Don't worry about it… she'll be fine, once we get her to the gatehouse. The attack's effect will have worn off by then."  
  
"Attack? What are you talking about?"  
  
"The attack I had my Jynx use to put her to sleep. You know, the Lovely Kiss."  
  
"WHAAAT!? What kind of drug is THAT??"  
  
"It's not a drug! Don't you know anything about sleep-inducing attacks? My Jynx used a move on the girl, and it made her go to sleep."  
  
"There's that word again. What on earth is a Jynx?"  
  
The man sighed, and reached into a pocket on his sweatshirt.  
  
"I guess you're one of the new trainers. Typical… walking around in the National Park without anything to protect you. I don't suppose you even have one of these yet."  
  
Mina had no idea what the man was talking about. He pulled out a small, flat, red object that was about the size of a large index card. A door flipped open on the object, and Mina was reminded of Ami's palmtop computer. The man pressed some buttons on the tiny keypad, and then held the computer in front of Mina so that she could read it.  
  
A small screen showed a picture of what looked like a short, stout woman with long blonde hair that hung down past her feet, which were covered by a long red dress with long sleeves. The woman's face was hidden in a shadow.  
  
The computer beeped, then followed up with a tinny, electronic voice.  
  
"Jynx. The--human--shape--pokémon. It--communicates--with--body--language. It--has--special--Psychic--powers--which--enable--it--to--hypnotize-- opponents--just--by--kissing--them. It--also--has--characteristics--of--an-- Ice--type."  
  
Mina stared at the computer for a moment.  
  
"Yeah… I caught mine in a cave over near Blackthorn. Let me tell you something, since you're new to this… make sure you've trained yours to around level thirty before you even think about going in there. And take along a good Fire type, especially one that has a trapping move… many of the critters you'll find in there can get away from you really quickly, since they can run on the ice."  
  
The man folded his red computer and stuffed it back in his pocket. Mina was still sitting there, confused. Meanwhile, the other men gathered around the stretcher and lifted it off the ground, carrying it away. Startled, Mina jumped up to follow them, but stopped when she noticed the man was staring at her in a questioning manner.  
  
Mina turned to face him.  
  
"Look… I dunno what any of this stuff is about… but thanks…"  
  
Mina smiled.  
  
"You saved my friend's life."  
  
The man smiled back.  
  
"You're welcome. Better get along, they're leaving."  
  
Mina looked back at the men, who were leaving at a fast pace, carefully carrying the stretcher between them. She glanced back at the man, who was talking to the dog-creature.  
  
A few moments later, Mina and the group of men reached the white building with the terracotta-shingled roof. Two of the men ran ahead to open the large, wooden doors, which Mina noticed had pictures of strange creatures carved into them. The other men carried the stretcher holding Lita through the double doors. Mina followed, looking around every now and then. The inside of the building looked like some sort of community center. A desk to her right had a man in a red uniform behind it, who was looking at something on a laptop computer. People were standing around, talking with one another. Some of them had little red palmtops like the man in the blue sweatshirt did, and a few of them were showing them to others.  
  
Probably information on some of those weird creatures, Mina thought.  
  
The men carrying Lita turned right down a hall and were heading for a door at the end of the short corridor. A woman stepped out of the door and held it open, allowing the men through. Mina was about to follow them when the woman stopped her with her free hand.  
  
"Sorry. We can't let in anyone else. Certified personnel only."  
  
"But she's my friend!"  
  
"You'll have to wait out here. I'm sorry."  
  
The woman paused when she saw Mina's grief-stricken face.  
  
"Don't worry, little girl! We'll have your friend back to full health in no time. You just sit out there in the lobby. I'll notify you when you may come back here and see her."  
  
Mina stared as the woman, smiling, turned back inside the room, letting the door close behind her.  
  
Don't worry? she thought. She has a huge gash in her side! She's lost so much blood! She's DYING, for crying out loud! And you're SMILING about everything? Telling me I shouldn't at least WORRY?  
  
Mina stood there, staring at the door, which had a refracted glass window; she couldn't see through it.  
  
This guy set his beast on her and put her to sleep! Shouldn't SOMEONE be worried about what strange men do to people's friends???  
  
What is it with these people? They act like these monsters running around are nothing to worry about.  
  
Exhausted from trying to sort everything out in her mind, Mina trodded out into the lobby and sat down on a cushioned bench, putting her face in her hands. She could hear the other people standing around as they talked about things she didn't understand.  
  
Mina began to think about what had happened in Serena's backyard.  
  
Did the monster send them to another place on Earth?  
  
Or to a different planet?  
  
As she sat there, running the clouded events of the night before through her mind, she heard familiar voices.  
  
"Mina!!!"  
  
"THERE you are!"  
  
"Where have you been?"  
  
"Where's Lita?"  
  
Mina looked up from her hands, and saw Ami, Rei, and Serena running towards her. At first she thought he was imagining things, that seeing them again was just an illusion brought on by her confused mind. When Rei walked up to her and put her hand on her shoulder was when Mina realized it was true.  
  
"What happened? How did you get here?"  
  
"Was that you screaming?"  
  
"What happened to Lita? Where is she?"  
  
Mina sat there for a moment, staring at the three of them with her mouth hanging open.  
  
"C'mon, get a grip!"  
  
"Alright alright! It's okay! …. I think."  
  
Mina paused to closed her eyes and take a deep breath. She then opened her eyes and proceeded to fill the three girls in on the events leading up to their reunion.  
  
"When I woke up, everyone else was still unconscious. I tried waking you guys, but you were all out cold… I remembered Ami and decided to find help. Sorry, I didn't think of how I was gonna find you again…  
  
'…Anyway, as I was walking through the forest, something jumped at me and knocked me down. It was this giant bug that had these huge knives on its arms, and it was swinging them at me. I don't remember how I managed to get away from it, but I ran from it and I guess that's when you heard me scream.  
  
'…Lita came to save me from the bug. It slashed her and nearly cut her in half. Then this other monster came along and breathed fire on the bug. This man ran up to us, and I guess the fire-breathing thing belonged to him because he sent it with me to go find help. So I ran and found these men wearing blue outfits, and they came back with me to get Lita and take her here."  
  
"Where is she?"  
  
"They took her into the room on the end of that hall."  
  
Mina pointed down the hallway. All of a sudden, she gasped and stared wide- eyed at Ami.  
  
"Ami! Your burn! Are you alright?"  
  
Ami stood there confused for a moment, then remembered what Mina was talking about.  
  
"Oh… my burn… I don't know how it happened, but it disappeared."  
  
Ami pulled up her shirt to show Mina. There was no trace of the injury whatsoever; it was like nothing had happened to her at all.  
  
Rei put her hand to her head.  
  
"You mean to tell me… Lita's fatally wounded?"  
  
Mina's pulse rate had begun to slow down, but it started up again at the mention of Lita's injury. Serena screamed.  
  
"Oh my god! Lita's going to die!!!"  
  
Serena then started crying very loudly and tearily. Everyone else covered their ears, as did some of the other people standing around in the lobby.  
  
"Serena, SHUT UP!!!"  
  
Rei had her hand held up and was about to bring it across Serena's face, when a woman with short pink hair tied up in a bun stepped out of the room at the end of the hall and approached them.  
  
"Are all of you here with the girl?"  
  
Everyone stopped and looked at the woman. Serena even stopped her wailing for a moment.  
  
"Um…"  
  
"Ah…"  
  
"Yes ma'am, we're all with her."  
  
"Her name is Lita." 


End file.
